BIBLE READING: 1 Chronicles 15-16

David’s first attempt to bring the ark to Jerusalem was a devastating event that left Uzzah dead and David in fear (1 Chronicles 13.5-14). But God was merciful to David, and David learned from these mistakes (15.12-13). He reset his heart by seeking God’s counsel and remembering the commandments of God (1 Chronicles 14.10, 14). This moved him to further preparations for the ark’s return to Jerusalem: ‘he prepared a place for the ark of God and pitched a tent for it. Then David said that no one but the Levites may carry the ark of God… And David assembled all Israel at Jerusalem to bring up the ark of the LORD to its place, which he had prepared for it.’ (1 Chronicles 15.1-3). He was obedient to God’s directive and eager to have the presence of God back among them.

The processional of the ark to Jerusalem and subsequent celebration was excessive. David prescribed countless offerings (15.26; 16.2-3). He appointed hundreds of Levites ‘to invoke, to thank, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel’ and select men to loudly play harps and lyres (15.16), ‘to sound cymbals and to blow trumpets regularly before the ark of the covenant of God’ (16.4-6). There was much rejoicing (15.25), especially by David, who dressed himself in a linen ephod and danced before the Lord (15.27-29). As the ark of the covenant ‘which is called by the name of the LORD who sits enthroned above the cherubim’ (1 Chronicles 13.6) returned to be among God’s people, there was nothing held back in terms of opulence and obedience.

Some observations about this scene.

Proper honor for God is an outflow of purification and preparation. David didn’t immediately try to bring the ark to Jerusalem. Instead, he invested himself in activities that allowed for this to be a God-honoring process. If our heart is not set on God’s honor, we will fail miserably to honor him or receive the blessings of his presence. Sometimes we need to ‘cleanse our hands and purify our hearts’ by recognizing our double-minded selfishness (James 4.8). We do this by ‘[purifying our] souls by obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love…” (1 Peter 1.22). Only then will God begin to draw near to us.

God deserves our best worship. David’s actions only seem excessive to those who don’t appreciate God’s worthiness. After his failure, David learned more than just obedience and fear. God deserved to be obeyed and worshipped. His presence wasn’t a right but a gift that could be accessed by his grace. It is a tremendous blessing to have the Creator of the universe available to his people at any moment by the blood of Jesus. We must not take this lightly! Like David, we must be totally invested in honoring God and restoring his presence among his people. There is no effort too great when offered through obedience and submission that God does not deserve. Perhaps we would do well to consider how to unlimit our devotion to God by exalting him with less inhibition and greater humility and thanks.

BIBLE READING: 2 Kings 18-19

King Hezekiah had witnessed the devastation of Israel by the Assyrians; and now they were standing on his doorstep (18.17). The Assyrians captured the fortified cities of Judah (18.13), leading Hezekiah to accept a desperate plea deal. He paid the imposed tribute (18.14-16) placing himself at the mercy of the Assyrians, and hoping that would be the end of it. But King Sennacherib wasn’t content to simply withdraw. He sent his mouth, Rabshakeh, to ensure Judah knew who was in charge now (18.17-ff).

“…if you say to me, ‘We trust in the LORD our God,’… is it without the LORD that I have come up against this place to destroy it? The LORD said to me, ‘Go up against this land and destroy it.’… ‘Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you out of my hand…’” (2 Kings 18.19-29).

His rationale wasn’t bad and his argument wasn’t entirely wrong. Hezekiah did not have the manpower to fight (2 Kings 18.24). Besides that, no one else had been able to stand against the Assyrians. YHWH himself had appointed Assyria for this purpose (Isaiah 10.5-6), and Sennacherib was keenly aware of his position (2 Kings 18.25). If one considered only the present factors, the outcome seemed obvious.

These are typically situations where faith caves. People find themselves out of options and human rationale purports that God’s ways have failed. It’s time to take a different approach. Clearly, Hezekiah’s back was against the wall and his resources depleted. The pattern of previous kings was to appeal to other nations for help (as his father Ahaz had done, 2 Kings 16.7ff). But here is where Hezekiah was different. He appealed to YHWH’s mercy through His prophet and with his own intercession (2 Kings 19.1-19). ‘O YHWH our God, save us, please, from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O YHWH, are God alone’ (19.19). He simply refused to accept other options or change his allegiance. His powerful plea is the core of what it means to have integrity, and we must pursue this practice.

But more than Hezekiah’s choices, Sennacherib made one serious misjudgment. To him, YHWH was in his hip pocket. He saw YHWH simply as the next god in line to be conquered (2 Kings 18.33-35). Much like Pharaoh many years before, Sennacherib did not know YHWH and felt no compulsion to respect him (cf. Exodus 5.2). If we learn anything from scripture, it is that YHWH always shows up when his honor is on the line. “I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David” (2 Kings 19.34). Before the night passed, Sennacherib’s army was depleted, he fled home to Assyria and within a short time, Sennacherib was murdered by his own sons (2 Kings 19.35-37).

Sometimes YHWH allows these situations to instruct his people. Perhaps we need our back against the wall to remind us how desperately we need mercy and that only God prevails with certainty and hope. He is not just the next god in line. He is God alone.

BIBLE READING: 2 Kings 9-10

Ahab and Jezebel wrecked the lives of many people. Their God-lessness culminated in the murder of an innocent man simply because they wanted him property (1 Kings 21), and this choice, secured God’s judgment against them.

“Thus says the LORD: ‘In the place where dogs licked up the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick your own blood.’ …Behold I will bring disaster upon you. I will utterly burn you up, and will cut off from Ahab every male, bond or free, in Israel… the dogs shall eat Jezebel within the walls of Jezreel.” (1 Kings 21.17-24).

God would appoint Jehu, one of Ahab’s commanders, to carry out the sentence (2 Kings 9.6-10; 25-26). With conviction and zeal Jehu exterminated the house of Ahab, purging the people of their God-less influence, according to the word of the LORD (2 Kings 9.26, 33-37; 10.10-11, 16-17). Moreover, “he wiped out Baal from Israel” (2 Kings 10.18-28). His tactics were brutal, but necessary acts of judgment from God (2 Kings 10.30). However, it appears his behavior went beyond what God expected from him (Hosea 1.4-5); but worse, “Jehu did not turn aside from the sins of Jeroboam… [from] the golden calves that were in Bethel and in Dan” (2 Kings 10.29, 31), bringing judgment upon his family and the nation (2 Kings 10.30b; 15.12). “In those days, the LORD began to cut off parts of Israel” (2 Kings 10.32).

A couple of lessons to consider from these events.

God is moved by the wickedness in the world. This is the hope of every righteous person— that God will arise and defend righteousness (Psalm 3.7; 7.6; 9.19; 10.12), to which God always responds (Psalm 12.5). It did not happen in the timeframe we would have expected (1 Kings 21.27-29), but God’s clear statement of judgment came to pass. He judged Ahab’s family so as to eradicate their influence on his people; and God is working towards the same end today. Perhaps it is not through mass killings, but God has put the wicked under judgment (2 Peter 2.1-3). We must not be lulled by the passing of time but settled in God’s justice and patience towards all.

God uses people to carry out his will. Jehu was a tool for justice, and he was commended so far as he operated within God’s expressed will to him. However, he was not given carte blanche in these matters. In fact, he got outside the bounds of God’s will and ignored the critical factor of his role: being right with God. For his failures he was also condemned. We must appreciate that understanding our activity from God doesn’t give us liberty to carry it out however we choose. We must continue to submit to God and not the gods of popular opinion or tradition. All the idols around us must be destroyed. We must not be deceived into thinking God’s favor is unconditional or that our usefulness or position are God’s total approval. God has given us these to serve his purposes and glory.

BIBLE READING: 1 Kings 21-22

Ahab was infamously wicked and very powerful (1 Kings 21.25-26). However, he did have moments of clarity about God and his own need for humility (21.27-29). But ultimately, Ahab was swayed by the voices of others and his own personal agendas. Even when a prophet from God spoke plainly to him, his impulse was to get mad because it wasn’t what he wanted.

“And [Ahab] said to Jehoshaphat, “There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of the LORD, Micaiah the son of Imlah, but I hate him, for he never prophesies good concerning me, but evil.” (1 Kings 22.8)

Micaiah enters the scene as a clarifying voice. Everybody was telling Ahab what he wanted to hear (1 Kings 22.6, 12); but Jehoshaphat understood what was going on (22.8). They needed an unbiased prophet who would truly tell them what God said. Ahab knew just the guy, but he really didn’t like him. His messengers tried to sway Micaiah, but he plainly stated, “what the LORD says to me, that I will speak” (1 Kings 22.14).

The sad part about this story is that, aside from some sarcasm, God doesn’t play games with Ahab. God tells Ahab (via Micaiah) that he was enticing him with a lying spirit to go out and be destroyed in battle… and Ahab didn’t listen. He thought he could manipulate the outcome by disguising himself in battle (1 Kings 21.30); but he could not defy the word of God. Ahab died in battle, struck by a random arrow, and the dogs licked up his blood (1 Kings 22.34-38; cf. 21.24).

A couple thoughts to consider from this episode:

1. Circumstances don’t always end well for the good guys. Imagine having the reputation of Micaiah. He was a known man of God whose commitment to speak God’s words got him publicly berated and thrown into prison (1 Kings 22.13-28). His peers were swayed by the power of the king, but Micaiah understood his calling (1 Kings 22.6, 14). Even though he spoke the truth, his staunch faith got him labeled a troublemaker. Like many prophets, his story ends with negativity with him stuck in prison. Surely this wasn’t what he wanted, but it was where faith took him and many others.
2. God is clear on outcomes. We don’t have specific revelation regarding our lives, but we can be certain that God is firmly in control of both the present and the future. Whether we like it or not, what he says is what will be. We must not attempt to defy or manipulate what God has plainly stated. To be in opposition to God’s word is to ensure we will receive judgment from God. God will judge the bad guys and reward the faithfulness of people who stand firmly on what the Lord has said.

We don’t know Michaiah’s immediate fate, but we are certain of Ahab’s. In the same way, we may not be sure of our immediate fate, but we can be certain of what will happen to those who don’t listen to God’s word. Let us stand confidently on these truths, living and speaking what the Lord has said to us.

BIBLE READING: 1 Kings 11-14

Solomon blew it and YHWH pronounced judgment through Jeroboam, his servant (1 Kings 11.26, 40). Via prophet, YHWH promised that Jeroboam would reign over 10 tribes of Israel, even giving Jeroboam similar promises to David (1 Kings 11.35, 38). Although Jeroboam was exiled for a short time, following the death of Solomon, things began falling into place. Rehoboam foolishly spurned his people who immediately departed and made Jeroboam king (1 Kings 12.1-20). “…it was a turn of affairs brought about by YHWH that he might fulfill his word, which [He] spoke… to Jeroboam…” (1 Kings 12.15)

The fracture situated Israel for civil war, but YHWH made a quick end to this with a clear message: “Stop this and go home” (1 Kings 12.24) … and they listened to YHWH. This episode emphatically teaches that conflicts do not have to end in destruction when people listen to God. In tense moments, the natural inclination is to follow them to the Nth degree. In fact, sometimes people divide to define and destroy the opposition. But tensions can be diffused and managed by the direction of God. The reality even today is that God’s people will encounter moments of strife that may cause separation (consider Acts 15.36-39), but it doesn’t have to end in the pursuit of destruction. Take a breath, maybe some time apart and be willing to do what God says. In this wisdom, people find clarity.

Ironically, this became a point of fear for Jeroboam. Since the people still listened to YHWH, Jeroboam worried he might lose control when they returned to Jerusalem to worship (1 Kings 12.26-27). “So the king… made two calves of gold… And he set one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. Then this thing became a sin…” (1 Kings 12.26-30). A man hand-picked by God to replace a king who had gone after other gods, now has left God to secure his own kingdom. How quickly people lose sight of God and his promises! For this reason, Jeroboam received a similar condemnation from the LORD regarding his kingdom: “YHWH will give up Israel because of the sins of Jeroboam…” (1 Kings 14.16).

We must see from Jeroboam that choices define faithfulness, not personal experiences. YHWH appeared to Jeroboam via prophet on at least 2 occasions. You would think these moments would impact him the rest of his life… but instead he was drawn away by other agendas.

The human heart has not changed. It is popular for people to define themselves by some experience with God in their lives. But the promotion of these moments tends more towards pride than faith in action. Hence why Paul would boast no in his third heaven experience but in his weakness (2 Corinthians 11-12). We must not desire or be defined by singular moments but daily devotion to the one we are sure has spoken. Whatever experience God gives us is must constrain us towards greater trust in what he has promised and directed to us through his word. We must not fear that the outcome will not be what we want. Instead, we must continue to listen and obey and let that settle our hearts.